Tori's A Lucky Girl
by Falcon226
Summary: The wedding is tomorrow, so of course the brides are spending the night apart. The stripper at Cat's bachelorette party hasn't even arrived yet, but things have already gotten hot and heavy.  Established Cori, very close friendship  and more?  for Cade.
1. Come On, Deliver To Me

A/N I think I've been inspired by some Faberry fics. Hm. I was going to write some straight-up Cori, but then this popped into my head.

* * *

"It's funny... I used to have the biggest crush on you."

I look up from my drink in shock, setting the glass down hastily. "What?"

"All through freshman and sophomore year. You never noticed? Really?"

It's like she's trying to make me feel bad about it, even if I had been with Beck at the time. "Cat, this is your bachelorette party. Do you _really_ want to be talking about this now?"

She pouts at me and I'm feeling guilty. I didn't do anything wrong for once, but I can't help it. Those big brown eyes just make you feel like pudding. One wouldn't think that Cat could still look as adorable at twenty-four as she did at sixteen, but she manages it. Her hair's not cupcake red anymore since her manager has issues, but she's still as sweet-looking as ever. If I was not in a monogamous relationship at the moment (you don't know the guy) and repeatedly reassuring myself of my strong sexual preference for males, I might be very tempted. Might. "C'mon, Jadey! It's my last night as a single lady. Please?" She's had half a drink and she's either so wasted, pretending, or she can't tell the difference.

"We're getting a stripper in half an hour. Uh... you can kiss her as much as you like."

Cat shakes her head. "Nah, I don't think it works like that... _Please?_"

"Tori's going to kill me," I tell her frankly. Cat totally knows that I'm going to get the lion's share of the yelling if her soon-to-be wife finds out. Rolling my eyes, I shrug to let her know I'll do it.

Smiling at me seductively, she crawls off of her beanbag and straddles me. I _really_ don't want to tell her that I'm getting ridiculously turned on right now. Legitimately, I gulp and look up at her hooded eyes. It's not difficult to see why Tori always looks so damn happy in the morning.

Are those my hands fondling her breasts? Under the shirt? Yes. Yes, they are. They're warm, and smooth, and she's not wearing a bra, and what the hell am I doing? She giggles and simply brushes her lips against mine once. Tease. Narrowing my eyes, I move one hand to the back of her head and bring it closer to mine.

It's Cat, so of course she surprises me by nipping at my upper lip and sucking on it. Struggling not to end up with crossed eyes, I look into her eyes and bite at her bottom lip. A mirthful sigh comes from the back of her throat, and her hands are cupping my cheeks. She's a damn good kisser, I can tell. Such a tease, but she never leaves me tempted for too long. Her tongue snakes into my mouth and for the slightest moment touches mine. I squeeze the breast still in my hand and graze a finger against the nipple. She moans and- and- My breathing heightens in pace and I've almost forgotten that this is Tori's girl and I have a boyfriend and this is so not good.

She senses the shift in mood and pulls back. "Something wrong?"

My hand slides from the back of her head and lies loosely at my side. "Not now. If you'd asked another time, maybe years ago..."

Eyebrows furrowed, I can tell she's hurt by my words. "But you always had a boyfriend..."

This is true. It was one boy after another. I never cheated on any of them, but I had a lot of guys interested after I broke up with Beck. None of them lasted for longer than a couple of months (except for this guy I'm with now and the guy who took me to prom), but there really was always someone. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Even though I probably wouldn't say no to a good roll in the hay right now, I really love Tori." She grins cheekily, kisses me one more time on the lips, and rolls next to me.

"Nobody hears about this."

She snorts. "That goes without saying."

We just lie in silence for a moment. "I never thought we'd end up like this. Any of us."

Her head rotates to face mine. "What?"

"You know. You being the Broadway star, with Tori Fucking Vega as your popstar wife."

"You're a director."

I nod once, which is difficult when one's head is resting on a beanbag. "Yes, I know. Director slash producer slash actor slash singer... I thought it would be you who couldn't decide what you wanted."

Cat purses her lips together. "I'm proud of you."

"Is that supposed to be helpful? You're not my mom." We've always had this rapport, really. She knows I'm never being mean.

"I'm better than your mother. I'm your gay best friend!"

I raise an eyebrow. "I thought the stereotype only works for gay guys..."

"Ah, nope! I'm just that sparkly."

One of those rare smiles makes its home on my face. I have no idea what the hell she's talking about, but I have the best friend in the world. "Tori's a lucky girl."

The doorbell peals. I hate that doorbell. It used to be just an annoying series of chimes, but Cat brought Robbie over one day and he decided to "fix" it. Uh huh. Yeah. If anybody wants a house with a doorbell that sounds more dissonant and creepier than the theme to Psycho, name your price!

"There's no luck about it, Jade," Cat says, rising to get the door. Wiggling her butt deliberately, she tells me loudly as she fiddles with the lock, "Just think, you could have had _this_ if you'd been less grumpy-pants oblivious." She's kidding, actually. Even before she admitted that she had that crush on me today, we've made jokes like this.

"Turn the handle _left_."

She does so. "I know what to do!"

"No you don't." I'm going to miss having her as a roommate. What the hell am I going to do with myself without her? I see my social future; it's as a third wheel in CatandTori with Jade. It really is almost like we're breaking up, with her going into the wonderful world of marriage. Tori really is such a lucky little bitch. If she messes with my Cat, she's so not worth my time.


	2. With This Ring

A/N This is an odd story, but I kind of like it. Pardon if some details seem a little out there, but I'm enjoying shaping this future 'verse. One of the things I like about writing a longer Victorious fic is getting to establish the world. I've got a lot of ideas about our favorite Hollywood Arts alumni, so I'd like to at least continue for a few more chapters~

* * *

I am _not_ crying at Cat and Tori's wedding. I have horrible allergies right now and I forgot to take my medication. Okay, fine, I'm really happy for them. Damn, these female hormones! I can't wipe my eyes right now since I'm supposed to be a maid of honor- Tori's sister is the other one- and somebody behind the scenes decided that I needed a lot of make-up. I ditched the goth look by the time I turned nineteen; even if I still tend to do up my eyes heavily, one look in that mirror nearly made me scream. I'm wearing as much make-up as an aging woman trying to hide something, and everyone will know how much gunk is caked on my face if I wipe my eye.

Both of the brides are in flowing ivory-colored designer dresses, Cat's strapless and Tori's with one elaborately-beaded strap over the shoulder. Celebrity perks, I guess. Everyone's just waiting for a scandal from Tori, who's a household name by now. Nobody except for the Broadway aficionados would have heard of Cat Valentine until the pap picture came out, courtesy of one Sinjin VanCleef. He's done a good job keeping chaste and keeping the readers excited. Somebody invited him to the wedding, and if it wasn't for the creepy crush he had on me in high school, I'd be thanking him for making Cat's career. I have nothing to fear from him anymore, since he somehow managed to find a lovely wife that shares his presidential teeth-collecting passion.

I don't have the celebrity pull that either of them do, as a mostly indie hyphenate (director-actor-blahblahblah). Cat's bitch of a manager wanted one of those transparent-closeted Broadway boys to be the maid of honor and spike some sort of controversy. That guy's as gay as Cat, though, so I'm sure even Enquirer readers would have thought something was up. Trina, on the other hand, made a royal fool of herself at last year's Emmy's, so the bitch had nothing to say about her.

It's my best friend and my sort-of friend getting married, though, and I'm so glad that I get to stand right next to Cat as she makes her vows.

"Do you, Victoria, take Catarina to be your wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish until death do you part?"

"I take this ring as a sign of my love and faithfulness in the name of the father, the son and the holy spirit."

"Do you, Catarina, take Victoria to be your wife, to love her unconditionally, as your partner in sickness and in health, your confidante and treasured friend to have and to hold from this day forward?"

"I do. With this ring, I promise to be faithful, and good. In the Lord's name, I pledge my soul."

Blah, blah, blah. Something Catholic happens and they're married! Yay, now I only have to get through the party and then head home alone. Cat already moved most of her stuff out last week. There's a lot of empty space now, as she collected a lot of stuff over the years. The new apartment that she will share with Tori is way bigger than mine. Not that mine's very large, even with two bedrooms, but still.

Cat grabs me by the hand and drags me into an alcove when we make it to the reception hall. Tori's already distracted by her weird sister and some sort of problem, so nobody notices our disappearance. I trip over the long hem of my red dress. "Ah, what d'you want?"

"Last night was fun. I don't know if you remember it..."

"I wasn't the one who was so drunk, that I said the stripper would be an excellent rodeo clown, you weirdo." I pretend to smack upside the head and she laughs.

"You're never going to let me live that down, are you?" She asks with mock sorrow.

I raise my eyebrows momentarily. "Hell, no... And yeah, I do remember what you're probably thinking of."

She blushes noticeably. "It's not going to happen again. But thanks. When I was sixteen, that was all I wanted to be happy."

"Really? And you were friends with me in spite of that?"

"B-because of it, I guess. _Obviously, _I got over that."

I smirk. "Nobody, especially not your wife, ever knows that the maid of honor made it to second base the night before the wedding. Deal?"

"What maid of honor?" she says, walking away.

I laugh and do my best in this dress contraption to catch up to her. Tori gets to her at the same time. It's been a while since she was rubbing my then-boyfriend (who was not invited to the wedding, if you'd like to know), and we're still not close. Well, I like her, and she's good to Cat, but I can't confide in or spend time alone with her easily. I watch as Cat cranes her neck upward to press a kiss to Tori's cheek.

"Hey, love," Tori says to Cat, catching her up in a hug. "Hey, Spookypants."

Like I said before, I'm not anywhere near goth anymore, but she won't the nickname she gave me junior year go. "Hi, Tor. Congratulations."

"Thanks! I'm so excited- the guests are all outside waiting for hours of wedding party and I'm running on empty!" Obviously, Tori's big and loud bachelorette party had kept her up for a long time. The heavy make-up job on Tori is a lot more natural-looking than it is on me. I have a feeling they used some of her shades on me, but I won't say anything. It's not my day.

I broke up with my douchebag of a boyfriend this morning when he whined about not getting to go to the wedding. Well excuse me for not making the guest list. I don't know. There's something about guys that can't let me do my own thing. Even if I had been so in love with him, I probably would not have paid him much attention here. Honestly, I like having a boyfriend, but my best friend's wedding takes top priority. I probably sound like a liberal nun or something, which makes no sense, but romance doesn't rule my life... And the sex was bad enough to withhold.

Tomorrow I'm taking off for LA to see if I can curry favor with Robert Downey Jr. so he'll make an appearance in my next film. I was lucky to get him in my film before last (especially when I'm only twenty-five), but he hadn't seemed so into the process. I'm so desperate when it comes to my movies. My first feature film, straight out of film school, I used all of the contacts I could. Andre composed the score and songs, Cat starred, I co-starred and took the opening vocals and directed and produced, Tori did the vocals for the closing, Robbie did most of the instrumentals... I even was desperate enough to get Sikowitz to make a cameo, even if he hadn't done a movie in fifteen years and was pretty washed-up. It was a huge mess, but I did manage to get a lot of fans of Tori (since Cat wasn't huge yet) to watch right away. The reviews were mostly unfavorable, but it might be turning into a cultish hit. I hope. This was right before pretty much all of my friends got really huge, so I got a distributor for the film eventually.

I'm looking at Tori and Cat (but mostly Cat) thoughtfully as they move to greet their guests. Would things have been better if I had noticed Cat's attention? If she had really liked me all through tenth grade, there was a three week-long window when I was single. She had not come out of the closet yet (that was the end of junior year), and probably had not worked up any sort of nerve... I'm sure that I am pretty heterosexual, but she's the most important person in my life. And we've gotten awfully touchy over the past few years, even before Tori came back into the picture. She's _married,_ for fuck's sake, and I'm undressing her with my eyes right now. I've seen her naked before, seeing as we've been roommates for the past four years, but I've never thought of her quite like this before, under me. I'm not a lesbian, but Cat's always sort of been that exception in my life.

Goddamnit. I just can't win here.


	3. You're Never Alone

A/N I had to stop myself from putting in bad plots again. Maybe I should find a beta... Jade almost ended up at home to discover Cat and Tori going at it like rabbits in her bed. Yeah. D:

* * *

I am a terrible friend. It's been over a week since I've actually answered Cat's phonecalls, and I'm just moping around Los Angeles like a zombie. It's so unlike me to have a one-night stand, and I just did. With a girl. Did I mention she looks a helluva lot like Cat? Same big brown eyes and everything. I think she thought I was some celebrity or something that is not actually me.

I hated the sex. Both of our fingers were clumsy, and she ended up hurting me. It only occurred to me when I was moaning in _pain_ that one should cut their nails short before even thinking of sticking them near a vagina. Even if I had no idea what I was doing, I have developed a nail biting problem over the past week, at the very least.

Downey Jr. was a bust, but I did manage to trade phone numbers with a new writer at that gay bar I went to. Since I usually do pretty much everything except for write (hey, gotta have some time to sleep), I'm always on the look-out for good writers. Well, she may or may not have been trying to ask me to dance or something, but I recognized her from a film festival her script got second place for last year. Small world, right? Yeah, needless to say, she is not the one I took home, but we had a lovely conversation in its own right.

There is nothing exciting to do here, and my plane ticket is not good for two more days. This is what I get for booking tickets online in the middle of the night. I think I just slipped out of my own hotel room to avoid my one night stand. I don't even know her name. As I wander about the floor above mine in the hotel for no good reason, I realize that I am now locked out of said room. I flip out for a while, prompting some friendly senior citizens to ask if I need an aspirin or something. When frustrated, I am not friendly, so I obviously scared them away.

Whilst flailing my arms about in frustration, my fist hits my pocket. Oh. I have a wallet and a phone. I did not walk out of the hotel room naked. I can get back in my room when the Cat lookalike leaves.

I have reached a new low of ridiculous when I am spying on my room from the landing on the floor above. Some kid must think I'm a spy or something, so he crouches down next to me.

"Whatcha doin'?" he whispers.

This is not an answer I can give the kid without corrupting his mind. "Uh, I'm doing exercise. Squatting. See?"

"You don't look like you're feeling the burn." He's no older than, what, six?

I raise an eyebrow at the kid. "Okay, you've caught me. I'm waiting for my friend to leave my hotel room so I can go in and play hide and seek with her." Thank you, Sikowitz, for preparing me for this beautiful improvisation.

He stares at me for a moment before informing me that, "Do you sure have a funny-looking face."

"Thanks," I say drily, glancing forward again. Oh! My target has been sighted! Why am I talking like I'm really perky!

As I watch her go towards the elevator, my phone rings. I pull it out and stare at it for a moment. It only registers that Cat is calling me when the kid grabs my phone and answers it for me. "Yeah? No, this is Jade's son, Tyler-"

"Give me that!" I hiss at him, wrenching it out of his grasp. "Hi, Cat."

"Was that really your son! Congratulations!"

I shoot a look at Tyler (I guess that's his name) and say, "No, that's not my son. I'm sure you would have noticed if I got pregnant. Just a weird kid that stole my phone. _Anyway..._"

"You haven't been answering my calls," she says with a pout in her voice.

Shit. I hate this little boy for ruining my avoidance strategy. "Well, I've been busy."

Tyler yells into the phone (and my ear. Ow.), "Some lady just walked out of a room that she's staring at!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Cat asks me with a hint of amusement.

"Uh..." I can't lie to her. But I need to lie to her. How I hate this child. "She's a friend."

Cat laughs and I can imagine that she's twirling an invisible phone cord. It's a weird habit of hers. "Oh, so our little party that night sparked something, didn't it?"

"No! ...Maybe?" Yeah, I can't really lie to her.

"Aw, that's so cute. Tell me about her."

I eye the weird boy next to me. Yeah, he is definitely not the kind of hanger-on I need right now. I stand up and start heading for the stairwell. Elevators to go down one floor are for losers. "I just wanted to try and, um, experiment, I guess." I'm not lying by omitting information here.

"Oh. Well, how did that go? You don't have to tell me if you don't wanna."

I blush as I open the door to the stairwell. "I don't think she was doing it right, to be honest. You should appreciate this: long fingernails."

"Ouch," she says sympathetically. "I can hook you up with someone better when you get back to NYC. There was this really nice techie that-"

I'm lumbering down the stairs like a hobo. "Ah, no, that's okay. I don't think I'm ready to start up with a relationship this soon. Uh, anyway, so why did you call?"

"Do I need a reason?" she asks rhetorically. "Okay, I just wanted to tell you that I'm free for like two months after this show run ends, so I can help you with that new movie of yours! Did you get Downey Jr.? I love his weird mustache."

"I bet Tori would love to hear that. Is that how you roleplay? She's your Robert with a big ol' fake mustache, and you're the starstruck fangirl?"

"Shut up! I- we only roleplay when it's- This is not a conversation that I am willing to continue!" she says huffily.

I open the door to my floor and start down the hall. "I'm sorry, okay?" I only apologize for her, and she knows it. "I do think I found a writer for the film after this, though, so that's good, right? Carmen Santos? Remember I made you go to that festival last year on your only night off?"

"Yeah! _Squid Dumping_! I loved that movie! That's great news, Jade!"

"Mm-hm. She's got this great piece about Anyway, I think I'm going to look up Andre while I'm here. If he's not busy for tomorrow, I might be able to get him on board for this score? My last guy fell through, and I'm not asking Robbie."

She laughs at my disdain for her friend. "Aw, c'mon, Robbie's not that bad."

I leave the phone between my shoulder and ear so I can get my key, and tell her sternly, "He is that bad. I am not working with him again after the last time." The 'last time' was not the last time that I had seen him. He was at the wedding, actually, since Cat likes him for some inexplicable reason. On that first movie when I pulled all of my old friends (and Robbie) from Hollywood Arts, he had tried to recompose Andre's beautiful score to make it more 'classic'. I already had developed a severe migraine from all of the rest of the jobs I was doing, so I had to waste an hour and a half of precious time to explain to Robbie exactly why he needed to follow the damn score. The guy doesn't get the picture. And he totally had a crush on every girl except for me in high school. Hey, I'm the self-centered type.

As I am opening the door, Cat says, "Fine, fine. Be a grumpypants."

"Isn't it six in the morning where you are?" I ask when it occurs to me.

"Uh... yeah. So?"

I know that she's an early riser. How can I not? "Tori's probably going to wake up and think you've been kidnapped or something like last time."

True story. Cat left her early in the morning a couple of months ago to meet me for coffee before I had a shooting day. Obviously, things had not gone well. "Oh. Right. Well, good morning, Jadey, and try not to blow up LA while you're there."

"Will do, bye." I collapse on my bed and just lie there for half an hour like a useless lump. After deciding that I am too disgusting to remain like this, I drag myself into the bathroom and have a shower. My hair's still as long as it was in high school. The only real change I've made to it since then is to eliminate the colored extensions. Out of everyone in my circle of (sort of) friends from high school, I'm the only one who has not changed their look drastically. I run my hands through my hair in the shower, catching at the wet snags. I'm calling Andre as soon as I get out of here, since I am too ridiculously mopey to have a right to live.


	4. Every Sight That I See Is

A/N Sit back and let the story unfold, all. I can't satisfy everyone, since it's just that kind of story, but there will be drama and romantic tension galore.

* * *

"Andre?"

I enjoy spending time with Andre, so I'm going to seize this opportunity to hang out with a decent person that won't think it's a good idea to see just how much our disposal can take. I love Cat- we're talking about as a friend here- but she's not terribly... stable. It is easy for me to get along with her, miraculously, but she's sometimes exhausting. And now that I am roommate-less, having a phone buddy could be good for me.

"Wha- yeah? Who is this?"

"Jade. C'mon, Andre, caller ID has been around for at least twenty years."

Andre groaned. "Well, I'm sorry for wanting to keep the surprises alive in this day and age. And, y'know that you called me, and I could hang up. I'm sure that you want something from me."

Grinning to myself guiltily, I say, "What? Why would I possibly want anything from you? I just so happen to be in town for two days and would love to meet up with you."

"You never just want to meet up," he points out. This is actually something of a fair assessment, as I always have a film project to ask him for help about or some contacts that I want.

"All right, I want something from you. Happy?"

He laughs lightly. "Yes."

"And maybe I make excuses to talk to you because you're actually tolerable to be around? And I kind of need someone to talk to?"

"Oh, this is new. You've never gotten so emotional on the phone." Oh, come on. This is not fair. He's implying that I'm emotional elsewhere.

Seething a little, I ask impatiently, "Are you busy or not?"

"I'm busy... tomorrow. Meet tonight at our usual spot? Seven?"

Satisfied, I tell him, "Come alone," and hang up immediately.

* * *

Our usual spot happens to be the restaurant in my hotel. A few years back, we had been trying to find a good place to meet up. Even though we both lived in LA for years, we had great difficulty finding the perfect combination of atmosphere, quality food, and lack of tackiness until I gave up one day and suggested we just eat at the hotel. I can honestly say that this was one of the best exasperated decisions I have made in my life.

We don't have a usual table because we only can meet up maybe, I don't know, three times a year. So I'm sitting alone at a booth, waiting for him to show up. It's 7:02 and I'm starting to get anxious. In my old age (or not), I have become very anal-retentive about time. I guess that comes from a high-stress job that has everything to do with time management.

He sits down across from me, and I didn't even know he had arrived yet. "Hey, Jade."

"What, no hug?" I stand up and open my arms. Somehow, I became a big ol' softy in the past few years.

Laughing, he gets up and gives me a quick squeeze before sitting back down. I do the same and take a sip of my water. A moment's silence passes before he speaks: "So, you wanted to talk?"

"Yeah, uh, I've got horror-thriller flick this time around."

He raises his eyebrows. "And you didn't tell me this on the phone why?"

"I didn't know you hated horror."

Shaking his head, he says excitedly, "I _love _freaky movies. Always wanted to write one of those themes. I'm so in."

"You're the best. We're just finishing pre-production for, honestly, everything else, and shooting starts in two and a half weeks. No need to get it done by then, though."

"Yeah, yeah. I know the drill. Send me the final draft of the script, pics of the cast and set, and all that jazz. I can have it done within the month."

The waiter comes at this point. We always get the same thing every time we come her, since we are just that adventurous. The usual topics of conversation come up: he's single at the moment, he just got slighted out of credits for a Grammy, he saw J. Lo and the supermarket last week. I'm keeping the conversation focused on him, deflecting his questions.

"What have you done since the wedding?"

I blush at the mention of that. "Uh, I've been here. In LA. That's it."

"Uh-huh." He scratches behind his ear. "Dating anybody?"

"_No_," I say, way too vehemently. "Actually, that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about. Well, um, you see..."

"Spill it, Jade."

I take a deep breath and say rather quickly, "So Cat and I had our own bachelorette party, not a big one like Tori's. It was just us and she told me she used to have a crush on me in high school-"

"She totally did."

"Shut up, please. I'm talking. Right. And then she wanted to kiss me, and you know I can't say no to her. She's _Cat_. So we kissed, and it got a little heavier than... um..."

His eyebrows knit together and his eyes get wide at the same time. His expression would be hilarious if it was not so concerned. "You didn't have _sex_ with her, did you?"

"No! But then I got to thinking."

"Oh, here it comes. The thinking..."

I roll my eyes. "I've never really had feelings for her before like this. I mean, I've always loved her. She's the best friend I could ask for, and I broke up with the last guy since I wanted to devote my time to her wedding. It's like, why didn't I think of this before? I see pictures of her and get all, you know..."

"Hot and bothered?"

"I wouldn't put it quite like that, but-"

Then the waiter comes, and I kind of want to shank him. I am having an extremely cathartic conversation right now, and I could forego my stuffed mushrooms to get all of this off my chest. I tap my foot impatiently under the table until the waiter is out of earshot before launching back into everything.

"I had a one night stand. Last night," I tell him, a horrified expression crossing my face. "She looked just like Cat, if our girl was over five feet. And she didn't try to tell me about something I never would have thought of in one hundred years. It was awful."

Andre looked uncomfortable as he chewed over a bite of steak. "You're not going to tell her, are you?"

"I don't know," I say frankly, poking at my food with a fork. "I don't even like girls besides her, and I'm stuck on this. Help me!"

"But I'm probably not the best person to ask?"

I've finally taken a bite of mushroom and I have say, "Why?" with my mouth full. I'm intrigued.

"I've kind of been stuck on Tori."

"Aw, poor us. We should hook up for the irony of it. Pair the spares."

He haphazardly makes cuts at this prime rib. "It's not funny. They're so happy together..."

"I cried at the wedding, I was so happy," I admit, feeling miserable about this whole mess.

We eat in silence, mutually commiserating. The food tastes especially good tonight, but I could care less. I'm so torn between wanting Cat to be happy and wanting her for myself, and Andre's been feeling that same way for years, probably. I've only got this fresh sting going.

"Where are you filming?" he asks to break the silence.

"Mm... Michigan. Ann Arbor, mostly. Why?"

"I can drop by around, oh, the 18th of next month, if you're still shooting. Haven't seen you work in a while, and I've got time."

I nod, thinking this through in my head. Today is the 24th of April, so that should work out. "We'll probably still be in principal photography. My cast's scheduling is all over the place. I only just got Cat on board, since her show run ends in around a week. Two months of free time for her before she has to go into rehearsals for her next show."

"Hold up, you've got _Cat_ in your movie now? Isn't Tori on tour? Like right now?"

"I guess so. Why?"

He raises his eyebrows and I can see the gears turning. Not that I can see into his mind and figure out exactly what he's plotting. "Ms. Cat Valentine is going to be spending however many weeks with you instead of Tori."

"..._No_. No, no, _no_. I can not take advantage of this situation. You know how happy they both are together! I am not messing with that! And what interest do you have vested in this?"

"Maybe Tori wants a tour buddy?" he suggests faintly.

I shake my head in a firm 'no'. "Do whatever you want with Tori, but it's not going to work. I can't- Just- Ugh!"

The rest of the meal passes in silence uneventful. There's the other restaurant patrons making some noise, but it's still really awkward. It's only when the bill comes that Andre does something more involved than eating. He takes the little leather folder from the waiter, jams some cash in, and walks out before I can protest.

Rushed and curious, I open the folder and count the money. There's a little less than the bill in there. He must have prepared for this. I shove the small amount of cash required in the folder and follow Andre's path out the best I can to top all of this.

He's nowhere in sight.


	5. Play it Cool

A/N Ah, I've got a lot of OCs popping in for the sake of Jade's sanity. Don't worry, they're not going to be getting shipped or anything. There just needs to be a film cast and crew so our favorite over-stressed and grumpy director/producer/whatever doesn't have to do everything.

* * *

I feel like a goddamn authoritarian mother, marching back and forth and trying to keep these snot-nosed brats in line. "Hey? Guys? Everyone? CAST! WOULD YOU SHUT UP FOR FIVE MINUTES?"

They do so, but only after the snickers subside. I rub my temples in frustration, trying not to blow up. There's only sixteen of them, most of them are older and supposedly more mature than me, and I can't even get them to behave better than my little cousin Joey, and he's a thirteen year old juvenile delinquent. I take a deep breath. "Okay, cast, we're going to do a read-through. I know some of you have never done this before, and you may not be in the role that you originally were cast in, but it's pretty easy and you're all here. This is our second assistant director, Laura with your scripts. We're gonna go by first names or nicknames here, because I can't be bothered to pronounce your Polish grandpa's crazy last name. I'm Jade. Don't bother me unless I give you explicit permission. Okay? Okay, we're _great_."

My first AD, Jack, goes through roll with everyone. I sit back and try not to have an aneurysm while Laura puts the actors through a read-through. I would die without my assistant directors. Since by nature I am such a control freak and feel the need to both produce and direct, I need a sound staff under me. This is my fourth film, and I was lucky to have Jack as my second AD in the movie I made as my senior project. He's a year younger than me, and happy to take on the less-creative than mine, yet high-stress, job he has now. He's a chill guy, and tends to be the voice of rationality when I start wanting to tear my hair out.

Laura's a newer addition to my team, a lucky find that I got for the last movie. Jack calls her Pixie. She's kind of like Cat. I'm sure the two of them will get on fabulously, as they they both share the belief that dancing spontaneously is an appropriate response to pretty much anything.

Speaking of Cat, I'm watching her the whole read-through instead of worrying about going over-budget or something. I pretend to keep busy, of course, but I'm definitely not getting anything done.

* * *

"You don't know how grateful I am that you're here," I tell Cat afterwards when she approaches me. I can't help myself; even if Andre's idea- he hasn't been answering my calls, by the way- is not something I want to follow through with.

"What? Why?"

I sigh and gesture to the cast playing drinking games with the lemonade. "It's not that I have a feeling that something is going to blow up while I'm here, is it? Or better yet, when I'm not here?"

She wraps her arm about my waist (since she can't reach up to my shoulders) and leads me to a table. I try not to shudder. "You'll get through it, Jadey!"

And it's not me, but her, who gets kissed on the cheek. My cheeks are usually colorless, but they feel like they're going to blow steam. "D-don't call me that in front of the cast!" I muster, blushing furiously.

Only she can get away with this, laughing like... anything. It's like she's trying to make this difficult. She detaches herself from me and moves to make some tacos. Thank you, craft services, for providing do-it-yourself dishes for vegetarians. "You're silly when you're nervous."

I pace a few steps nervously before making a quick taco. Being with Cat makes me too unstable, so I mutter some excuse about production work and head to where we set up base camp. It's just a room in the building we've rented until we get trailers and studio access. There's no room for anything more than a table that fits two laptops, four chairs, and a television mounted above. Jack's there already, and I'm immensely grateful for his presence. "Heya, Jade. You look more emotionally unstable than usual."

"You're so sweet," I say with less bite than I can usually muster.

"Spill," he says, raising his eyebrows.

I shake my head no, but then reconsider. "I've got it bad for one of the cast."

"That big guy Jason? I mean, he's all right if y-"

I glare at him. "_No,_ not that oaf. And anyway, you already know her."

"Her?"

"Mm. Yes. You know her, she's cast, and female. Three guesses, and the first two don't count."

The information dawns on him, as I can infer from his gaping mouth and epiphanic expression. I prod a finger under his jaw so he shuts that trap. "Good lord, you've got it bad for Cat Valentine?"

"Yes, Jack, and she can't know."

He looks puzzled. "Why? She's- oh. Married."

"We're getting somewhere. Good job. Want a treat, boy? Now give me advice before I start taking out my frustration on Laura. Don't tell her either. Please."

The corner of Jack's mouth curls into a smirk. "Ah, I can't decide whether or not you want to cut me or throw you a life preserver."

I sigh. "I need a sanity preserver right now."

"Why do you need a sanity preserver right now?" Ack. That's a more feminine voice than Jack's.

Pulling an artificial smile onto my face, I turn to face Cat. "Hi, Cat."

"Hi. Why?"

I shrug as nonchalantly as I can. "I always want to murder the cast and crew before the first day is out."

"That's so sweet," Jack says, mimicking my voice.

"Do something with me, Jadey!" Cat says, clinging to my arm suddenly. "Are you busy?"

I pause for a moment, having a complete brainfart. Blinking, I ask Jack, "Am I busy?" I don't know which answer I would prefer more right now.

"No," he tells me. "But you're both needed back at two. Wardrobe for you, Cat, and production monkeying for you, Jade."

"Perfect, thanks, Jack!" Cat says cheerfully, leading me out on the town before I can protest. Apparently, we're in the campus part of town, since everything looks suddenly collegiate with big blue signs labeling everything. Swarms of students are miraculously absent, but I'm still spirited away to my college years back at NYU.

I don't know why she chooses once bench in particular, but we're now sitting there and she's humming a bright and peppy song. I don't know what to say, so I just come out with, "So how's Tori?" Stupid, stupid, _stupid_!

"Good," she says neutrally. "She should be arriving in LA tonight."

Andre should be happy. "That's great. I'm surprised you didn't follow her on tour."

"I hate touring," Cat says, scrunching up her face. "I get bus sick and it's so stuffy in there. The bus. And, and, we get almost a month together! Yay! It's just as good as roommates."

"I'm already thinking of replacing you," I say, slipping into old, joking speech patterns more easily than I thought. "It's too weird having a room and bed next door with nobody in it."

"Clone me!" she suggests, tackling me in a hug. "You miss me."

"So much," I admit, not enjoying the feeling of the bench on my back.

That little smile over me as she sits back up ever so slowly. The powers of the universe are teasing me, or maybe Cat just sees what I'm doing and isn't my friend after all. Ugh, really? No, she wouldn't be that awful. Would she? I need to stop second-guessing our friendship. We've honestly been best friends for over eight years. I don't think she has any horrible ulterior motives in store for torturing me now.

"I think I'll stay with you when production is over," Cat says when we're both finally sitting up.

"What?"

"That- You're okay with that, right? Tour and my break don't come together, and I hate to sleep all alone."

I don't know whether or not I can blush visibly, but I'm sure my face is getting hot at what she's implying. "Want to get something to eat? You took me away from my taco."

"Oh, sorry, Jade!" she says sincerely. "C'mon, we'll find something."

For the second time today, I'm grabbed by the hand and dragged off to who knows where.


	6. And Still the Sky Is Light

A/N Hm. I wonder if we're missing somebody in this story...? Heh. He'll show up eventually.

* * *

Cat is watching me eat, which would be creepy if it was anybody else. I know her enough to not get mad when she becomes enthralled by my everyday actions. She's tilting her head to the side as I eat scrambled eggs at this dreadful little diner. "See anything you like?" I tease.

"Mm-hm," she says absently, following my fork's path. I twirl the utensil in a little circle just to make her head spin. There's only so much cuteness I can take when it comes to her, so I turn my eyes back down to my plate. This only lasts for a second, since she suddenly asks me, "Jade, are you really lonely?"

"I'm surrounded by a film crew and a bunch of wet-behind-the-nose actors. I think I'm the opposite of lonely."

She grabs my free hand, which has been lolling about on the table until now. "You look so sad, though. And you miss me at our apartment. _And_ there was the One Night Lady Friend."

"That's an interesting way of putting it. 'One Night Lady Friend'. ONLF. Mm, like MILF's better-behaved little sister," I say, tugging half-heartedly at my hand in her firm grasp.

Squeezing tighter on my hand with a surge of emotion, Cat says way too loudly for this little diner, "Be serious! I hate it when you're all sad. And you totally are. Definitely lonely. Get a boyfriend! Girlfriend, whatever. But not until after the film, 'kay? I hate sharing."

I know she's literally telling me to get a lover after I'm done with this film, but that's a long while away. Why would she want to have this conversation with me now? "Are you trying to tell me to cheer up so you don't feel bad about having fun?"

"No," she says more quietly than before, which isn't saying much. "I want to have this last hurrah of fun before we both get all busy. It feels like my heart's going 'splody to say this, but I don't think we're ever going to be able to spend much time together once Tori gets back from touring. Haha. Tori. Tour. Oh. Right. Serious face."

It takes me a while to think of how to respond to that, and she looks at me patiently until I do. "We can still go out to parties and award shows, even hang out. And you're only going to be in rehearsals, right?"

"That's the thing... The show's not in New York," she says reluctantly. Her grip all but dissolves, letting my hand fall out of hers. "Tori... She wants to move to London. The show opens on the West End." Biting her lip guiltily, I can tell she's about to cry. "Don't be mad."

"I'm not," I tell her in a flat tone. "London's wonderful. I- You didn't have a honeymoon right? You'll be getting away from it all for a long while, won't you?" My words sound more acerbic as I continue to speak.

Cat is crying now, tears flowing freely. "I don't want to l-l-leave you, b-but it's been T-tori's dream to live there for a while."

I feel bad, but I'm too upset and hurt to be nice. Whilst gritting my teeth, I hurt my eggs (and possibly the plate) with a fork. "Oh, so we're not good enough friends that you couldn't tell me this before? Great, Cat. Thanks. Hope you make nice happy new friends in fucking London and fucking don't tell them things too."

People are starting to stare, even if I'm not as loud as Cat was earlier. "I- I- She- I'm sorry!" Throwing up her hands in consternation, she leaves the diner.

Some stranger in the next booth over glares at me. "You're never getting your girlfriend back if you stay here, jerk," she says with a scrunched up face.

"Mind your own damn business!" I yell at her, flailing my arms about and knocking over my water glass. Not caring that I am getting very wet, I add, "And she's not my girlfriend!" Unwilling to stay in here any longer, I grab my wallet from my bag, pull out what looks like ten dollars, and throw it on the table. That should more than cover my meal and troubles. Fuming, I storm out of the restaraunt.

Cat's sitting on a bench not so far away, apparently waiting for me. I can tell she's cried a lot in the past minute, but she's still trying to make friends with the pigeons that are swarming around her feet. She does not see me yet, too occupied with her bird friends. Not knowing what the hell I'm getting into, I march towards her.

"Hi, Jade," she says quietly when she notices me.

I say nothing, only survey her beautiful face for a moment. Some perverse part of me takes over, and the next thing I know, I'm straddling her lap on the bench, kissing her hard.

She doesn't respond at first, and I can't blame her for being confused; I'm just as freaked out as she is. It's only a matter of time before she'll push me off and want out of this movie.

But she doesn't push away, and her small hands are now gripping my sides. The bench is not terribly large, and I'm grateful that she has hold of me, because I swear I was about to fall. Hungrily (but carefully because of our bench situation), she snakes her tongue into my mouth and makes herself at home in there. I'm getting terribly aroused right now, just from this.

"Shit," I say, pulling away from her abruptly. "You're Cat Valentine."

"Yes... Nice to meet you, Jade?" she says, trying to play along.

"No, I mean, you're _Cat Valentine._ Celebrity Broadway star, married, and I just kissed you in the middle of Ann Arbor... in front of at least six people." It's definitely a slow day and a non-trafficked area that we're in right now.

"Oh." she says, apparently coming back down to Earth. "We just- not drunk- in public sort of- and... and..."

"-And I love you."

Cat sighs and pushes me gently off. "It's a little late for saying that."

Nodding, I take a seat next to her. Mournfully, I say, "I had so many chances, didn't I? I could've... How many years have we known one another?"

"Ten? A little less?"

"I never realized that... you were right in front of me all along. God, how many guys did I go through?"

She shrugs and places a hand on my knee. "Don't beat yourself up about it. I hid it when I thought there was a chance. Y'know how I didn't get asked to prom?"

"Yeah."

Laughing bitterly, she tells me, "I was glad that nobody asked me for the longest time. There was this weird fantasy I had when I was fifteen that you would break up with Beck and I'd step in and it would all be perfect."

"I didn't break up with Beck for a while after that."

She raises a shoulder self-consciously and looks away. "No... I had to get over you. I was really happy with some of the girls I was with, and 'specially Tori. She's awesome."

A groan involuntarily comes out and I try to stifle it. It's almost possible to forget about Tori Vega until she pops back in like she always does. Cat notices my discomfort, so I protest. "It's not-"

"I want to."

"What?"

Cat moves her hand up my thigh and looks at me with that irresistibly sultry expression she can have. "I want to make love to you. I love Tori, but I love you too. So much."

"It's so wrong," I say, feeling my underwear getting uncomfortably moist.

"I know," she says unhappily. Brushing away a tear of hers, she adds, "Somebody's going to get hurt."

"I know." Maybe me, maybe Tori, maybe all three of us. "And I always told myself that I would never be involved in a relationship like this, but I've never felt like this about _anyone_. It hurts."

She chews on her lip for a moment. "Don't think about the too-faraway future. There's now, and I love you, and tonight when I'll make you feel crazy good. Okay?"

"Okay." I check my phone and see that we still have half an hour to get back. Hm. Doing my best to take Cat's advice, I cup her face and kiss her quickly. "Let's head back and we'll see what we can do in the time we have left. before we're needed. We're going now." For once, I take her by the hand and lead her in the general direction of our destination.

Now. I have to make the most of this time I have, before she's 3,456 miles away.


	7. Say It Soft

A/N Mini contest. The chapter titles are excerpts from something. A book, a play, a movie, a TV show... The first person where can tell me where I borrowed them from (through PMs or as a side comment in a review) will get a mildly exciting prize. Oh. And sorry for the delay of chapter. College moving. Gahh.

* * *

I... am not a maniac in bed. Let me explain:

As soon as it's midnight and everyone is finally gone to party or sleep, I sneak off to her room and rap a quiet tattoo on her door. The door opens ever so slowly and she manages to fill the entire doorframe with her tiny body. She's in lingerie and I don't really want to know why she brought it with her when she was probably supposed to be spending the next couple months celibate. Well, maybe Tori was planning on doing something with her. I don't know. I'm not Tori, but I'm glad that Cat dressed up especially for me. I happen to have not packed any particularly sexy underwear in anticipation of a miserably lonely trip. I'm not wearing grandma panties or anything, but it's no silk camisole and... is that a thong?

"Jade," She says, leaning confidently against the doorframe.

I look behind me, paranoid that anybody should see us. "Um..." Great, now I'm feeling like a virgin all over again.

Cat takes my hands and pulls me inside. "Don't be nervous. It's not going to be painful or anything."

That was not what I was worried about, but now I am wondering if it's like shots at the doctors. I pretended to be all obsessed with pain in high school, but it actually made me cringe inside. "I... Okay." Gracefully as I can manage, I kick the door closed (my greatest success of the night) and move towards her. At this point, I miss her lips and catch her nose. She giggles anyway, which makes me feel all right. I grope her breasts over her slip of a top nervously while she messes with the button fly of my jeans.

She's impatient to get my pants off, it seems, so I'm feeling a slight chill within the minute. I shudder visibly, and she giggles, pulling away. I'm hungry for her lips, but she guides me to the bed. Seductively, she makes eye contact with me and somehow gets the idea across that she wants me back-down on the bed. I obey.

Her hand slips down my underwear, and I'm bucking my hips with just one touch. She continues to make me feel a hell of a lot better than I thought was possible. Maybe it takes really bad lesbian sex to appreciate this, but I'm not thinking of going back to crappy boyfriends anytime soon. There's only Cat and me right now, and I need to hang onto that for as long as I can.

I come quite quickly, and she kisses me after trying to help me ride it out. I'm no good at this double orgasm thing, but it still feels amazing to complete the course.

She's a good six inches smaller than me, and slim to boot. It's no impossible for me to sit up and lift her easily into my lap. I kiss her myself and lean backwards again. "Take off your panties," I whisper to her. "Please."

Obediently, she shimmies out of them and tosses them aside. I kiss her again, more sloppily, and dip my fingers down below.

And that's when it all goes to hell and I fail to get her off because she's laughing so hard.

"You're not supposed t-to t-t-tickle me!" she chuckles, writhing in all the wrong ways.

I am horribly offended by this. "I'm not trying to! What am I doing wrong?"

"Everything! See?" She demonstrates one of the ways I might get her off. And then another. Needless to say, I'm morbidly embarrassed.

It's with bruised self-confidence that I trudge back to my room. "Tomorrow night?" she suggests hopefully.

"So long as you don't laugh at me," I murmur, sulking with my head down all the way back to my room.

* * *

"Okay, people. We've got two days to rehearse before the cameras come in. I need everyone in scenes 12, 34, 35, 38, 39, 40, and 64 in wardrobe. If you need prosthetics or other specialty make-up, please go there too. There's nobody on crew assigned to babysit you. Go. Now!"

Ten of the cast members (not including Cat) run off to get their costumes. We're behind schedule because of those damn cameras. They were supposed to arrive last night, but they're certainly not here. The best we can do right now is get in rehearsals now instead of right before the shots. It's not ideal, but we're wasting money if we do nothing.

Laura's organizing her clipboard or something, and Cat appears to be walking over to her. My girl (for now) apparently says something hysterical, because Laura is now in stitches. I puff my cheeks out slightly and move to interfere with the conversation. "What's the joke?"

My poor 2nd AD can't get a phrase out. "I- she- that- you!"

Cat giggles. "We're talking about you, Jadey. Old, old stories."

"That's nice. Now please don't call me 'Jadey' around people who are supposed to have some level of respect for me."

Laura grins. "Aw, you know I don't respect you, Jade. Your reputation remains just as tarnished as it was before this conversation."

They're just messing with me, and I'm glad I have learned anger management skills since high school. Honestly, although everyone saw me as a stone cold bitch, I'm extremely emotional. Really, how could an emotionless person have so much hate in them? I gained some people skills in the past several years, but I'm still not a docile little lamb. I would not be myself without a little bite. " I have something I'm supposed to be doing," I say, trying to shoot Cat a meaningful glance.

She seems to deliberately be ignoring me, and Laura might be starting to get suspicious of something. It's only when I'm just about to turn away and get ready for the run-through that I get that look I've been waiting for. I only thought it was fantastical when someone winks alluringly at you, but no, it's not cheesy at all when she does it. Okay, everything about Cat is a little over-the-top, but I don't want to gag.

I think quickly and decide that responding to Cat at all would leave Laura with too many clues. Tonight, I'll make it up to her. I'm sure that I can do better than last night.


	8. A Boy Like That

A/N Gahhh, this is so delayed. College life is busy. If this is an off chapter, tell me.

* * *

I'm kissing her hard, and she's helpless under me. Kneading hard circles into her size (hopefully not hard enough to bruise), I am trying to push all of my stresses out of me. Not that I want them to go into her, but maybe they could just disappear? It hurts so much, doing this. My eyes are tearing up and I'm glad she has her eyes closed. She shold be all mine, and I was just too blind to realize this before.

I push my hands to her hips and hold her there steadily. She doesn't move, though, and allows me to have control over this. I run my tongue along her teeth, hitting her tongue once. She combats my actions skillfully, and I need to do more. Terrible, I know, but I can't help being this competitive. So, now my hands are dipping lower, cupping what I can get at of her bum, since I'm on top. Squeaking, she shudders a little bit.

Spontaneously, I pull my lips and arms away and sit up. I am straddling her now, and just look down at her flushed face. "You're not laughing now, are you?"

"Jade..." she manages, reaching for my hand.

I swat it away playfully. "You want something, don't you?"

"Kiss me," she moans, grabbing for my hand again and sitting up.

Laughing, I lean forward and kiss her again. She claws at my back until I dip my hands into her pants. Yeah, I've got this sex thing down. Now we just have to get past second base and I won't feel like an eighth grader. My confidence is dropping until she moans into my mouth. _Yes._

_

* * *

_It's dreadfully cliche, but I'm kind of glowing the morning after. "What's got you so smiley?" Laura asks the next day.

"Really good night," I say honestly. "I could have spent the whole day in bed..."

"Right. Yeah, no, that doesn't sound like you, Jade," Laura says, searching her clipboard for something. "This movie's never getting made unless you're here."

"Oh, that makes me feel so good about myself," I tell her. "Never mind, I'm in too good a mood to ruin your day. Now, before the situation changes, what's on our agenda for the morning?"

Laura rifles through the papers. "Rehearsal again. Hm... nope, um... Yeah, that's about it."

I shrug and head off to yell at people. How I love my job.

* * *

As much as I like to think so, she's not mine. The sky has been dark for a while, and she was too tired to do anything more than kiss me and collapse on my bed. I stroke her hair and try not to get too emotional from such a gesture. It just... she's so beautiful and sweet, even if she is cheating on her wife. I want her so badly, I'm throwing all my morals out the window. I would have mauled Beck and the... hussy he hypothetically cheated with if he had gone astray.

Well, actually, that kind of was what happened. I scratched up that girl pretty well, and she ended up needing stitches along her cheek. Anger management was no fun at all, and the session leader always looked at the people in the group like we were attached to tightly-wound springs. Somehow, I got through it, and the guy was actually pretty legit. I'm still a very angry person, but I haven't had a flip out in which anybody has been in danger for a while.

I don't miss Beck. Tori seems to think of him as my soulmate- probably because we were Beck&Jade when she met us- and occasionally still wonders what he might be doing. It does not help in the least that she always seems to be looking at me whenever he pops up in conversation.

Beck himself? I haven't seen him in at least two and a half years. Out of everyone in our loose friend circle at Hollywood Arts, he was the only one to pull out of the entertainment industry. It's sad, in a way. His dream was to be an actor, and he worked so hard for years. He even graduated from Hollywood Arts, planning to be an actor.

College changes a person, I guess. He pulled out of the BFA program at Syracruse University in favor of a more "serious" business-y pre-law degree. He's quite successful with the wife and kids and everything. Mr. Oliver has found the American dream!

Cat stirs beneath me, moaning something in her sleep. I mumble something that might sound comforting in her ear and brush some stray hairs from her face after she swats at them. I don't know who she's thinking of right now, and we have not talked as much about our relationship as I expected.

It's been eight days since we arrived in Ann Arbor. We've talked considerably less than we did as friends, and I admittedly miss that. I had expected that it would be so easy, both best friends and lovers. Instead of parting after a good conversation to our respective beds, we would have simply shared the bed and made love. Not so. It feels excellent and relieving to have someone so good to share intimacy with, but I can't help but want to just talk again.

I can't be satisfied when I get what I want. It was so improbable that she was even willing to share a bed with me that I should be thankful before the shit hits the fan. I'm expecting it to soon. Jade West is too much of a pessimist to expect anything to stay easy enough for too long.

* * *

"We're getting a divorce."

"_Oh._" What does he want me to do about this? I don't even know how he found my number.

"I just... thought you should know... you know?"

I spin around in the rotating chair once before saying, "I guess."

He says I'm the first one that he called. I don't know why this should matter; all I can be is his crazy ex-girlfriend. I sure hope that he doesn't think we are going to get back together or anything. Even if I'm in this crazy cheating relationship, I do not want to get mixed up with my ex who is not even divorced yet. Honestly, my life's enough of a shitty soap opera.

"I don't know," he says after a moment, sighing. "I need a friend right now, Jade."

"So you ask around for my cell phone number and call me?"

"Andre mentioned you'd gotten a new number in passing a couple months ago, and I figured it might be handy to have."

I groan. "Beck, really? Don't you have a therapist for this? And kids to worry about?"

"What?"

"When was I ever the best person to come for about relationship advice? I'm poisonous to relationships, remember? Why me?"

There is another pause on this end. "It's been a while. I've had my fair share of bad advice from Robbie and Andre over the years. I don't want to bother Tori and Cat so early, and do you really think Trina or Sinjin would be any help?"

"Well, no... But don't you have other friends for this? Smart lawyer friends who have nothing to do with the crazy world of show business."

"I don't know. I get a little nostalgic sometimes."

I kind of do want to hear what's going on, but Jack is freaking out about something five feet away an I should probably make sure we didn't lose the cameras or something. "We'll talk later. I have to work. I'll call you."


	9. There is Good

A/N College is busy. I am a little lazy. Hope this chapter makes sense. A bit of the high school Jade comes back if you understand out what she's doing. If it's unclear, I'll fix that.

* * *

With my luck, Beck does not listen in the least. Maybe I didn't call him back for a week, but he just calls out of the blue again and says he's flying to Michigan in three days. Lovely. Apparently, one of his kids is coming along too. It's going to be so _weird_. Everyone always assumed I was going to get married to Beck after high school, so here's my hypothetical half kid coming. I don't even know if it's a boy or a girl, since the little monster has to be called "Sam".

I haven't told Cat yet, but she keeps asking why I look so long in the face. After the second day, she gets through. So of course I have to tell her, and I'm pacing across the bedroom, very, very tense.

"Okay. It's Beck."

"What? You're not- not going to leave me?"

I take a beat (since she's speaking so ironically right now) before saying, "No. He's just interested for some reason. He's coming in_ tomorrow_ with his little kid. Sam."

"Oh, I love children," she says happily bouncing on the bed. "Do you think we'll get to play with him... her... that?"

I shrug uncomfortably. "Not sure I want to spend much time with the kid. This was not my plan or anything. He's just coming in with _it_."

She hops off the bed and loops her arms around me. "It'll be okay, don't worry, pretty Jadey." Of course I melt in her arms when she kisses me, and I forget everything for just a moment.

* * *

He's taller-looking, or maybe it's just his fancy imposing lawyer outfit. Law-types always put me on edge, and he just looks so damn stern with that horrible mustache. What prompted him to grow that?

"Hi, Beck," I say, half-hiding behind Jack. Laura, passing by, shoves me roughly toward the guy I really do not want to see. I glare at her quickly and almost regret not telling her about what's going on. No, I do not want to see this man anymore. A whole minute is good enough.

Cat peers through a nearby doorway and says cheerfully, "Beck!" She bounds out of the building and hugs him eagerly. Why do I even try to confide in people anymore?

"Whoa, Cat," he says, chuckling. "Really good to see you guys. Have you met my daughter?"

A little girl who can't be more than four peeks her head from behind her father. My eyes widen. I can't help it; she looks just like me at that age, down to the pale skin. Her long, flowy dark hair, her wide-eyed stare, and even those cheekbones are mine. The only thing she's got to show she's not me are big brown eyes. But still, the resemblance is uncanny. How the hell that happened, I'm not sure. She's probably not even as fair-skinned as I was... am (quite possibly I wasn't a vampire then; I don't know), but I'm thinking in comparison to her daddy. I furrow my brow and look to Beck, who is waiting for a response. Oh, right. I walk over to her tentatively and come as close as i can without having to crane my neck down or kneel. I hated when grown-ups did that. "Hi, Sam. I'm Jade. I went to school with your daddy. That's Cat. She was there with us too."

"Hi," she says, staring at me without even glancing at Cat. Why do people ever think it's a good idea to have children around me? They like me for no reason, and I'm no fun.

Beck disentangles himself from my lover (oh, wow, I have a lover) and scoops up his little girl. I guess they look kind of alike, now that their heads are level, but Beck is nowhere near pale enough for this to make much sense to me. "Haven't had any Daddy and Sammy time lately, so I thought I'd kill two birds with one stone. It's been so long since I've seen the two of you, and I'd love to go out for coffee."

My little doppelganger giggles when her daddy nuzzles her, but then she turns to stare at me again. Cat loses interest in the conversation quickly and is talking to a multi-tasking Laura.

"Sure, uh, yeah." I pull my eyes away from Sam and look at Beck. God, that is a really bad mustache. "Right now? I guess I'm free."

He nods, so I grab Cat by the arm and pull her helpfully toward the door. Sam laughs, and I'm really just confused today.

* * *

Cat squeezes in the booth next to Beck before anybody can do anything about it, so I'm stuck with the girl sitting on a pile of phonebooks. _Great._

"She's a pretty little girl," Cat says to Beck, stirring non-dairy creamer into her coffee.

Children also hate it when you talk about them when they are not there, so I feel bad enough to try talking to her. "So, uh, what do you like to do?"

"Sing?" she answers as if she thinks this might be a test.

"Me too. I used to want to be a singer, but then I started making movies, and I only got to sing in the first one."

Sam's eyes get huge. "You got to sing in your movie? And people watched it?"

Not all that many people, but, "Oh, yeah. Did you know your daddy has a really great voice? He could have been really famous, but he became a lawyer." Beck hears the tail-end of the conversation, and his eyes narrow. I ignore him and press on. "What do you want to do when you grow up?"

"Not a lawyer," she says, laughing. Was I this happy when I was small? I can't even remember. Sam looks at em again and then clings to my arm. Whoa, did not see that coming..

"Aw, she likes you," coos Cat. For all of her appreciation of children, she has no idea how to interact with one.

"Sam, do you want to go back to the hotel yet?" Beck asks uncomfortably.

The girl shakes her head. "Nuh uh. Jade, are you famous?"

"Not yet," I admit, glancing with a momentarily cocky raised eyebrow at Beck. "Mostly I direct, and maybe act a little. But Cat, on the other hand, Cat's on Broadway. It's super-hard to get there, but you could probably do it if you're half as good as your daddy here..."

I thought Sam might have transferred her questions to Cat after that question, but nope, it's all about me. She clings more eagerly to me and says, "Really?"

"Yeah, really. Do you want to come on set and see Cat act too? She's really good, you know. That's what she gets paid to do; act and sing."

"I want to see!"

"Mr. Oliver," I say, looking at poor Beck. "Would you care to take a field trip on set?" This is some odd revenge I'm pulling. He's the one that came to see me, and I've got his daughter wrapped around my finger. I can't help it; I like the kid.

He squeezes his cup in frustration. "Fine."

It's when Sam cheers and gives me a big hug and I see Cat's "aww" face that I realize that I've made a worse mess than giving a child a dream.


	10. That Name Will Never Be the Same To Me

A/N I haven't worked on his in a while, but I got some direction after finding out the LOVELY news that my ex cheated on me with my friend while we were together. So now I have some second-hand experience here, since my ex thought to grace me with this information three months after we broke up for the sake of his guilty conscience. Haha. Since I have slightly more sympathy for Jade than my friend (who happened to date my ex a while back), things are going to go a bit differently.

No owning of Victorious, Rocky Horror, or West Side Story (See chapter titles). Allison, Jack, and half of Sam (her mom?) are mine.

* * *

"When'd you grow a kid, Jade?" Laura asks as she passes by me for the second annoying time that day.

"Ha ha," I say dryly, waving her off. "She's not mine."

"Obviously," she teases. "Who'd trust you with a kid?"

Sam clings to me more tightly and sticks her tongue out at Laura. My assistant director, being as mature as she is, does the same. I roll my eyes at both of them and continue on my way to set. "C'mon, children, we don't have all day."

"Speak for yourself, Jadey," says Cat, starting to move away from me.

I grab her by the collar. "Where are you going?"

"Um... nowhere?"

"Um... my set?"

She nods slowly. "Oh. Right."

The three of us- Laura has to find something first- continue to head toward the set. Wait... three of us?

"Where's Daddy?" Sam asks, glancing about wildly.

Cat and I exchange glances. "We'll find him later. Just... have fun!" Cat said cheerfully, spinning around in a circle for no good reason.

Shaking my head in what must be exasperation, I say, "So, about that movie that we're a day and a half behind schedule on?"

* * *

"She looks just like me, doesn't she?"

"Who? Lindsey Lohan?"

I look at her and say sharply, "_No, _Beck's daughter, Sam."

"I don't see it."

"You've seen my baby pictures and everything. She has my eyebrows. _Nobody_ has my eyebrows."

Cat shrugs. "I guess she has your eyebrows if it makes you happy?"

"I'm... just saying it's kind of weird?"

She embraces me suddenly and moves her head to my ear. After nipping at my earlobe for a moment, she says, "You know what's weird? That neither of us are naked yet. Let's change that."

* * *

"Mm..." I moan under Cat as she makes me _feel_. God, I don't know how, but she makes it seem like I'm the center of her world when she makes love (or is it lust?) to me.

Oh _shit _that feels good. I clench my fists into the sheets and try to not make so much noise. The walls are probably not soundproof, and I'm worried about freaking out the hotel neighbors. "Cat," comes out before I can stop myself. It'd not too loud; more spoken than screamed or whispered.

At this point she crawls over my body and up to meet my lips with hers. I grab her hips and thrust my groin into hers. She groans and then sighs happily. I move my hands up slowly to cup her breasts. They're beautiful and soft, and I have to wonder if I'm going to want to feel something like these again when I-

Oh. Oh, that's right.

My hands fall back to my sides. Blankly, I stare into her eyes, unsure of what I mean to say.

"Why'd you stop?" she asks, kissing me.

I don't reciprocate, and she knows something's wrong.

"Jadey? Jade, baby?"

"Don't call me that. I'm not your baby," I say harshly, pushing on her shoulders so she gets off of me.

Since she's so light, my push nearly causes her to fall off of the bed. "What are you talking about? I love you, Jadey-baby."

"Shut up!" I hiss. "You're not- I'm not- I'm not feeling well right now. I'm just... stressed. Andre's coming in tomorrow, and Beck's leaving early and I've got to make sure that him and Sam are- Oh _God_. Can we just not do this tonight?" I cover my bare breasts with my sheet and glance from Cat to the door.

"You're kicking me out?"

"Yes. I don't want to talk about it." I can't just tell people things face to face all the time.

* * *

"C'mon, Tori... Pick up. Goddammit, I know you're up... It's only eleven-thirty..." I say to the phone. Maybe I should have put some clothes on before making this phone call, but I'm too high-strung right now to put on a shirt correctly. And I'm so OCD sometimes, that I don't want to have to get even more upset about something so stupid.

"Hullo?" a sleepy voice answers.

"Tori!"

"Jade?"

"Yeah... Tori?"

"Janet! Dr. Scott! Rocky!"

"..."

"S-sorry. I was watching Rocky Horror before- N-never mind. Uh... what's up? How's the movie." I can hear her suppress a yawn over the phone.

I sigh, for I am oh-so-dramatic. "The movie's fine. We're only a day and a half behind schedule and that's not why I called you."

"Oh? Okay. Then... Is it about Cat? How is she?"

"Yeah. Um... I feel like the worst person in the world. It's kind of about her."

Sternly, she asks, "Did she get kicked off set again?"

"No, no. It's- God, I can't lie to you. She's been cheating on you with-"

"What!" she shouts, nearly making me lose hearing in my right ear.

"-With me. I'm so, so sorry. That's not going to mean anything to you, but I'm sure you'd rather know than not."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

She stammers, "Wh-why everything! Y-you pretend to be my, you know, friend and even say that you're, what word am I looking for? Oh right. Straight. And then you take advantage of my _wife_? How could you? What did you do to her! How?"

I feel like the lowest of the low, the shittiest person in history. "I'm selfish. And it doesn't mean anything now, but I know how it feels."

"Oh, _you_ know how it feels?"

"Beck."

"That was high school."

"You kissed him too!"

"That was a theatrical improvisation exercise!"

I swear, steam is coming out from my nostrils. "It damn well was at least spite. At least I didn't cheat out of spite."

"Pray tell, Jade, what in the world would prompt you to seduce my fucking wife?"

"Fine, I'll be honest. We kissed, kind of as a joke at her bachelorette party. And then I couldn't get her out of my head. And then there was- Andre! Oh... Oh, uh..."

"What about Andre?"

I dismiss this, "Nothing about Andre. He's just coming in and I need to... remember that." I'm not going to put Andre in the middle of this. That would make everything worse. "But... there was the time constraint. I wanted to- you and Cat- London... You would never know, and that was okay back when it started. I had gotten to thinking that if I had realized how incredibly attracted I could be to Cat when she was all for me- freshman and sophomore year by the way, she says- maybe things would have gone differently. Maybe I wouldn't have been the, uh, girl with all of the bad boyfriends. And I wouldn't have had to go through heartbreak with Beck. And that's why I'm telling you now. It hurts so much to see your boyfri- err, girlfriend- with someone else, especially if they're happy."

"You do realize you've ruined all three of our lives?" she says quietly.

"I do."

"The media's going to have a field day if this gets out."

"I realize. They don't have to know, if you're really careful."

She groans. "I can't do anything about this until she calls me."

"I'll make her call you."

"Do that. Her career's finished if she doesn't have a damn good reason for me to take her back."

I can only hope Sinjin's the first pap on this case, if any. But we still can't let this get out... Cat's Broadway career will be in the pits, and nobody's going to want to work with me. Tori'll probably be all right. The pity thing gets you far if you play it right.

"Tori, I'll take care of it."

"You better."


	11. Just Wait And See

A/N *hums* Blink and you'll miss it reference to an Amber Benson movie in this chapter. OH GOODNESS I NEED TO UPDATE THIS STORY MORE FREQUENTLY. AND WRITE IT BETTER.

* * *

Oh, come on, Jade. Why can't you just find your own girl? Or guy, for that matter? You got by on guys for years, and you're still pretty attracted to them, right? You've got to wonder why it's the one girl that got away (without your knowledge) that you want?

Goddamit. I need to give her back to Tori, but when she steals me into the bathroom and starts kissing me silly, it's hard to get in a word edgewise.

"Cat, no-"

"I'm not doing it right?"

"No- Yes- I..." I take a deep breath and wonder if she still might be as vulnerable as she was in high school. "We have to end this."

"Oh, you're busy? Sorry, I'll see you ton-"

I shake my head furiously from side to side. "_No_, I don't want you in my bed tonight. Not any night. You're Tori's wife."

"She never has to know..."

"Well she does know."

Her already-large eyes widen. "What! No, _Jade_... You didn't...?"

I nudge her shoulder so she gets out of my personal bubble. "I did. Now, you're never going to see me again after this film wraps up. We're going to act friendly in public, then you're going to go to England with Tori and get on your fucking knees and _grovel_. We're not going to have sex, and we're not friends anymore."

"Jade, you can't-"

"I can, and I will. I've hurt too many people in my life, and I'm not going to ruin yours and Tori's marriage. She loves you."

"I know, but-"

"It was a mistake. I'm in the experimental phase of my twenties. You are- _were_ my best friend, and it's only natural that I would turn to you first. I'm sorry. We're not friends anymore, and I can't say that I'm going to miss you." I turn on my heel and don't look back, long hair masking my hurt expression.

It's not often that I cry. There's only been six times that I can really remember. I cried when my childhood nanny died when I was seven. Then, when I was eight and a half, I cried when I didn't get the first part I wanted- Juliet in Romeo and Juliet. The next time was not until when Beck broke with me. Another time was when that heartbreaker Beck cheated on me- the first time I had ever really been the victim. I cried at Cat and Tori's wedding. And now... Now I wish there was another bathroom that I could lock myself in, but I just left the bathroom.

I'm feeling sorry for myself and looking at the ground with tears spilling liberally when I make a crash. My temper has never been particularly noteworthy for being withheld, so it's no surprise when I start screaming, "Get out of the fucking w-" And then I realize who I just walked into. "Oh. Andre."

"Bad acting back there?" he suggests, glancing around at the surroundings.

"You could say that." I sure don't think I convinced myself back there that I was not going to miss Cat.

He nods. "Oh... Well, I got most of your horror movie soundtrack down. That's why I'm here and all. So... you want that?"

"Sure. Yeah." I am so not in the mood to be a stable, working adult right now. "Have it on you?"

"Yeah." He rifles through the bag he has on him and forks over the CD. "Here, I hope you like- Whoa, what happened?"

Obviously, he just got a glimpse of my expression, and has the faintest idea of how I'm feeling right now. "Remember our last conversation?"

"Yeah."

"Let's just say that whatever chance you had of getting it on with Tori is shot."

Frowning, he says, "I'm not trying to sound witty or ironic or anything, but what's that supposed to mean?"

I, quite frustrated with the topic, start to brush my dampened hair out of my face. "Okay, well, Cat was into it, and it was great for a while. Like mind-blowingly amazing, and I was actually happy. And, then, well, then Beck came. And has this daughter, and she's so adorable. Sam. It's so weird, since she looks just like me. You know it's not possible that she's my kid. That would be weird, but she has my eyebrows. And... and nobody has my eyebrows. And-"

"Does this have to do with why you're still crying?"

I puff my cheeks out and glare at him. "_Yes_, I was getting there. Anyway... Sam adored me, and I took advantage of that to make Beck, you know, upset."

"No, I don't know."

"Whatever. Anyway, she somehow made have this- what do you call it- epiphany. One day, Tori and Cat might have kids. Really. I'm sure that a few years down the line they're going to have that technology all fixed up so lesbians can make magical babies. And they're going to be great mothers. And... and I looked at what child could have been mine if I'd stayed with Beck... We really could have been happy if I got over it. The truth sets you free, and I am never going to help someone's heart get broken again."

Andre looks uncomfortable. "So, you're sayin' that you think that Tori's going to take Cat back, even if she knows about the cheating. And then they're going to have magical lesbian babies and live happily ever after while you join a convent?"

I shrug. "Pretty much. Sorry, 'Dre. We lost this one. Tori's a lost cause."

"I was thinking all about Tori for so long," he sighs. "I still do. But I found a new girl, actually. In Cali. It hasn't been very long yet since we met, but it almost feels like home with her. Really nice."

"So..."

"It's not a big deal for me anymore. I guess Tori was always the dream girl."

Oh no, those tears aren't coming again. Fuck you, female hormones. Please restrain yourselves so I may have my eyes dry in peace. "God, I feel like such a pig..." So much for dry eyes.

He moves to put his arm around my shoulder while I sob uncontrollably. "Hey, Jade. It's okay. You can still talk with Cat. She understands, right?

"Th-that's the thing," I sniff. "I t-told her p-pretty much that I n-never want to talk to her again."

"Well, do you want to?"

"Of c-course I do. Whether or not she's in bed with me, she's my best friend. And she always will be..."

Comfortingly, Andre steers me to a padded bench "Take a rest. You look like a mess. No offense, but you still wear way too much eyeliner."

I laugh, but it's half-forced. "You sure know how to charm a girl. Heh. Whathserface must be so glad to have snagged you."

"Her name's Alexis, and you're going to take a nap. I know you used to nap so well in those cruddy desks in Ms. Woodward's classroom, and you're going to take one now. It'll do you some good."

"Fine." I resign myself to the task, but I'm going to make myself comfortable if I have to do this. After nudging Andre to one side of the bench, I move myself into a position reminiscent of a fetus and try not to move too much. Maybe putting off my troubles and catching up on some sleep will do me some good...


	12. We'll Find a Way of Forgiving

A/N Um... So this isn't a threesome story. Or a lovey-dovey story, for that matter. It breaks my heart to write this stuff sometimes, but break-ups happen.

* * *

"Jade? Jade, wake up."

"Hm...?"

"There's a movie to direct." Jack. Oh. Oh, god. How long have I been sleeping?

I rub my forehead without opening my eyes just yet. "Okay, whose idea was it to let me go to sleep?"

"I dunno. Just found you sleeping here, boss. We've got one more scene to do, and we finally got everyone in all that crazy make-up you wanted."

Definitely not caring too much about the movie right now, I sit up suddenly. "Andre!"

"No, Jack. I'm Jack."

I shake my head. Groaning, I correct myself: "Ahh, no. Andre. My friend. He came here and- Cat!"

"Slow down, Jade. Did you guys break up or something?"

"No, there wasn't anything to begin with. But... yes... I pushed her away. She's not even going to be my friend anymore," I say glumly. "And we still have to- Oh, she's in this scene, isn't she?"

"Yes'm. Come on before everyone starts yelling at you for once," Jack says calmly, reaching out a hand to help me up.

I am perfectly capable of getting up myself and I'm also a little peeved, so I slap his hand away and stand up. Goodness, can't people just understand when I don't want to be touched? My irritability is pretty prominent, y'know? Anyway, I do have to direct this scene, so I shuffle unhappily to set. Fortunately, I at least know where I'm going. I would be a lot more embarrassed if I had to ask Jack for more help.

"All right, everyone! Everything's under control," I say loudly as I enter the room we're using for set. And there's always chaos, so I know I have to be loud.

Okay, everyone's in a mild state of confusion right now, but nothing major. All good. Someone I don't recognize seems to be having trouble rigging some lights, but we'll be good to go soon enough. Lights aren't my area of expertise, so I find one of what's-his-name-newbie's superiors and wait it out. It's not a good idea to rush the techs too much, lest I have a resentful crew armed with electrical equipment.

I've managed to half asleep in my chair within a minute. That is, until I feel a tap on my shoulder which makes me jolt up. "_What?_"

"I- uh, Jade..." It's Cat. _Great_.

"Hi, Cat. Go... not here." I turn my head away from her and sulk. She's still next to me, I can tell. "Now. We're not friends or anything, so there is absolutely no reason for you to be talking to me right now."

She sighs and I can hear her walk away slowly. I feel horrible for treating my best friend- erm, former best friend- like shit. But we have to break this off or I'm going to feel even more guilty.

* * *

Another bad date. I think I'm destined for a life of loneliness forevermore. Oh, no. I'm becoming Edgar Allen Poe. Uck. He's kind of whiny, and I don't even know why I liked him so much as a kid. Okay, yeah, I do. He was dark and I wanted to like everything dark. There's something so appealing when you're a teenager about resenting the world, misinterpreting everything, and being angry. Anyway, forgiving my former literary taste, I really am just that screwed out of relationship happiness.

I haven't seen or heard from Cat nor Tori in months. Well, no, that's a lie. I can't even pick up a magazine anymore without finding some mention of how happy Tori and Cat are together, or about how successful their careers are. Sleep has abandoned me, and I'm moodier than ever. The only thing that can distract me from my unhappiness is my job. Right now, I'm helping a friend out with her screenplay, and prepping for my own next projects. I've tried everything else besides work to keep at least satisfactorily chipper, but one night stands with pretty girls with big brown eyes mostly just make me want to cry.

The dates might be better, though. I tend to get set up on those by people who either don't know or don't know _about_ Cat. Guys with charming smiles and the occasional girls with all of their shit together make me feel like a mess. It's not them that's messing up the dates; all of this is my fault, pushing everyone away who might stand a chance at making me feel happier. It would probably do me some good to make somebody else happy too. Yeah, I know that I'm a shitty lay.

As soon as my date (his name is Tom) uncomfortably ushers me to my doorstep, my mind is directed towards work. With an eager look in my eyes not present before, I kiss him good night and mumble something about another time. After I finally get some time to myself, I'm preparing myself for work, work, and more work. My comfiest pajamas, enough caffeinated tea cans to make a pyramid, and a heaping bowl of tortilla chips are all I need right now to work steadily for six and a half hours. I probably would have gone seven and a half or eight hours if the phone hadn't rang.

I didn't even hear the ringtone the first time it sounded, but the flashing lights out of the corner of my eye brought me out of a work-induced trance. Groggily, I retrieve the phone and answer unsteadily: "Hello?"

"Jadey? I- err... Jade?"

"Cat?"

"Yeah."

"...Okay."

"Hi."

"H-hi, Cat."

"I'm sorry."

"What for?" I know that I want her to apologize, because I'm hurt. But I don't deserve that.

"Ruining our friendship, for one thing. I mean, you've always been my best friend. Well, not always. Because, you know, that would be really weird. We'd have to be born friends, and I wasn't even friends with my mom right off the bat. Huh... And I-"

I shouldn't be letting her ramble. "Don't apologize. This is my fault."

"Um..."

"You know it is. I can't even believe that you called me. I hurt you so badly. And- and I said we weren't friends."

"But you didn't mean it-"

"I didn't mean it, but not in the way you think."

There's only some fuzzy static on her end of the line. All right, I've got to say all of this myself. Okay. I can do this. Jade Freaking West doesn't back down when the going gets tough. Okay, now I'm sounding like a tough guy, and I'm no John Wayne. I'm just, well, me, and I've got to deal with my own shit.

"Right. So, Cat, I do care about you, but cheating makes me feel awful inside. If things had been different. If things- I- I don't know." So much for getting through this.

A sigh can be heard from her end. "What are you saying?"

"It wasn't meant to be. See, I think we both fucked up. Tori makes you so happy. And maybe I could have made you happy too, but this not-so-linear sexuality thing is new to me. Don't judge me, Cat. I'm not as accepting of change as you are." I have no idea what I'm talking about right now. There's way too much that I want to tell her, and I'm not lingering for nearly long enough on any topic. Rubbing frustrated circles over my temples, I continue. "If I'd realized how attractive and wonderful you were earlier, maybe we'd be married now. But 'what if's are nigh-useless... You still love Tori, right?"

"Yes."

"Oh. Okay." I suppose that response was only to be expected. "I forgot to ask, but are you still, you know, into me like that?"

"Yes."

"So you're not over me?"

She giggles for just a moment, and I'm having a hard time picking up any traces of bitterness in her tone. "I guess I never really got over you, Jadey. Not all the way. Right now, though, I need you as a friend more than I want you as the beautiful girl who's been in my dreams since high school."

"So you're saying...?"

"God, Jade, all I need right now is my best friend back. Do you know how much fun movie nights are with Tori?"

"How fun are they?" I respond, humoring her.

"...Well, they're actually really fun, but we never actually end up finishing the movie, which totally sucks."

"What, you don't have someone else to force your romcoms and who-the-fuck-knows-where-you-found-these-B-movies on?"

"_No_, and it's _awful_! Please, please, please come up here the next time you get the chance? I need someone to hold me during a scary movie that's not going to try to get in my pants and won't be too mean to me about it."

How the hell did I go so long without her in my life? "I'll be in London within the week, airplane booking convenience permitting. That means you have seven days to get a hold of Bridget Jones's Diary and the wacky horror movie of your choice. Got it?"

I'm worried something awful has happened to her after she doesn't respond for at least twenty seconds. I hear some weird clunking noises through the phone, leading me to be quite suspicious. I'm just about to abandon my patience and start freaking out when she starts laughing hysterically. She says between chuckles, "I'm sorry! I fell out of my chair, I was so happy!"

"Y'know what? Make that six days. You need me too much. How did you survive without me?"

"Ah ha. No, no, no. How did _you_ survive without _me_?"

Honestly? I have no idea. It doesn't matter anymore, though, since I am never letting myself lose my best friend again.

* * *

ENDENDEND

Okay, so it took me over half of a year to finish this last chapter, but it's done. I'm not completely pleased with everything, but I couldn't leave this story without something resembling a conclusion. Yeah, I intended to end this story on a much sadder note, but I think Jade and Cat need each other in their lives, no matter what roles they play. That's not necessarily true for canon Cade, but I've come to realize that it's not very fun to write for these characters completely IC. Right now, the characters are just way too shallow to write without betraying some of canon, and my fic's story predates a lot of character development. -shrugs- Who knows if I'll write for Victorious again? I don't.


End file.
